


Teach Me

by pingo1387



Series: ZoLu One-Shots [1]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Drawing, Family, Friendship, Gen, M/M, Minor Monkey D. Luffy/Roronoa Zoro, Pre-Time Skip, strip poker (sfw), the zolu is light but just to be safe i'm putting this in zl oneshots, trans franky (one piece), trans nico robin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-26
Updated: 2019-12-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:14:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21977158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pingo1387/pseuds/pingo1387
Summary: Struggling to make a birthday gift for Chopper, Franky is forced to ask Usopp for help. Light ZoLu in the background.
Relationships: Franky & Usopp (One Piece)
Series: ZoLu One-Shots [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1581991
Comments: 2
Kudos: 36
Collections: OP Secret Santa 2019





	Teach Me

**Author's Note:**

  * For [nevermordor](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nevermordor/gifts).



> Written for the OP secret santa 2019!

Usopp, bent over his workshop table as he tinkered with spices and gunpowder, jumped at the _BANG_ when something was slammed down in front of him. He looked up to see Franky, who stared at him for a moment before looking away, pouting. 

“What?” he said at last. He looked down and pushed his things aside, picking up the paper Franky had slammed down. “A blank wanted poster? Thirty million beris? What is this?” 

“The deer-kid’s birthday’s tomorrow, right?” Franky said, still looking away. 

“Chopper? Yeah, what about it?” The crew had gone to great lengths to hide their presents from Chopper, since living on a ship together meant there weren’t many places to hide things. Fortunately, he didn’t suspect a thing, and as far as he knew all that was happening was that Sanji would bake him a cake. 

“He’s pretty bummed about his bounty, right? I figured I’d make him a new poster. Thing is, I … how do I say this?” 

“You don’t know what kind of pose or face he should be making?” Usopp said, looking up. “That’s easy! He—” 

“That’s not it! I know exactly what I want it to look like!” Franky finally turned his head to look at Usopp again, scowling with pink cheeks. “I just can’t draw it.” 

“Oh. I—hey, isn’t your face made of metal? How are you blushing?” 

“Neat, isn’t it? I built in these thin pouches just below my face, which fill up with a reddening agent when my body temperature—” 

“Never mind, never mind! So, what are you saying? You want me, the great artist, to teach you to draw?” 

“Uh, yeah,” Franky said, deflating again. “Yeah. If you’re not busy?” 

“Nope,” Usopp said, sweeping an arm out and knocking away his supplies. They fell onto the floor and smoke started rising from the wood. As he stomped on the flame, wincing, Usopp continued, “Where’s Chopper now? He can’t come down here while we’re working on this.” 

“Playing in the snow with Strawhat and the swordsman,” Franky said. “I’m pretty sure they’ll keep him busy long enough to get this done.” 

The cold weather had forced the Sunny to run into a large patch of slush, slowing their progress towards Sabaody but not halting it entirely. As such, the crew was taking it easy, their only necessary job currently being making sure the ship hadn’t frozen to the sea while they slept and they were still on course. 

“Okay, that’s good,” Usopp said, nodding. He grinned and scooted aside, patting the spot next to him at the table, and Franky sat down. “I see you already have most of the poster drawn?” 

“Of course,” Franky said, folding his arms. “Shapes and letters are easy.” 

“Right, right. Now, let the master show you how it’s done!” 

“Just start already!” 

* * *

“What do you _mean,_ you’ve never built a snowman?” Luffy demanded, placing his hands on his hips. “It was snowing all the time on Drum, wasn’t it? And you never built a snowman?” 

“I don’t—what’s a snowman?” Chopper exclaimed, looking between him and Zoro. “Show me!” 

“Oh, boy,” Zoro said with a sigh. “You have a lot to learn about the world.” 

“Huh? Show me! Show me!” 

“Okay!” Luffy exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air. “First, we’re gonna make a snowball!” 

“Uh-huh?” 

“Then, we do this!” Luffy dropped to his knees, scooped up snow, packed it together, and started rolling it around. The light snow falling around them ensured they wouldn’t run out anytime soon. 

“Luffy, you’re too inefficient,” Zoro said, shaking his head. He took the ball from Luffy and started pushing it, running at top speed around the ship until it was about half his height. “See, that’s how you roll a snowman.” 

“Zoro!” Chopper cheered, grinning. “You’re amazing!” 

“Of course. Luffy, you do the head.” 

“Let me help,” Chopper exclaimed. He and Luffy pushed the next snowball together, around and around until it was about half as large as the first one. “What now?” 

* * *

“They’re really going at it now,” Nami remarked, peering out the kitchen window as Chopper jumped for joy and started building his own snowman. She sat back down at the table. “Sanji- _kun,_ more hot chocolate.” 

“Of course, my love,” Sanji crooned, scooping up the pot from the stove and pouring her another cupful. 

“With whipped cream!” 

“Yes, Nami- _san!”_

“How marvelous youth is, to waste your days away playing in the snow,” Brook said wistfully from the couch. “Alas, these old bones must rest today. Speaking of youth, where did Usopp- _san_ and Franky- _san_ get to?” 

Robin, sitting across from Nami, closed her eyes. “They’re below deck, drawing something,” she said, opening them again. “Franky looks awfully serious.” 

“More hot chocolate, Robin- _chan?”_ Sanji offered. 

“No, thank you.” 

“Franky, Franky,” Nami said, sticking her tongue into her whipped cream and bringing a dollop back into her mouth. “Did he ever tell you how he picked that name?” 

“Not exactly,” Robin said. “He mentioned everyone’s called him that since he was small, and I suppose he made the permanent change along with his body.” 

“What about you?” Nami said. 

“My name? My name was always Robin. I never had issues with it. I suppose I’m lucky, in that sense.” She smiled. “The Government never had to update the name on my bounty. It’s a shame … I would have loved to make things harder for them.” 

Nami laughed, and Brook said, “Sanji- _san,_ might I have another hot chocolate?” 

“Yeah, yeah, just a fucking second!” 

* * *

“People are too soft,” Franky complained as he erased yet more lines of a sketch, scowling and biting the end of his pencil. 

“Huh?” Usopp said. “Is that some kind of statement on mankind?” 

“No, I mean this drawing! Lines are hard, and people are soft!” 

“Oh. Look, let’s go over it again.” Usopp leaned forward. “How about drawing the body first, and then the face?” 

Franky sighed and rested his forehead against his hand. “Okay. Yeah.” 

“Start with shapes. Do a circle for his head, and lines for his arms.” 

Franky leaned over, drew the shapes, and leaned back again. “Easy.” 

“Yeah! So, now draw on his hat. It’s more or less a cylinder surrounded by a raised circle.” 

“Uh-huh?” Franky drew this in, and after a moment of thought added what showed of the X on the hat. 

“Now for details.” Franky groaned. “Just listen! You go off of the shapes you drew, and make them softer. Lemme show you.” Usopp grabbed a spare piece of paper, sketched a circle, and sketched fuzz around it. “See? The fur sticks to your base shape.” 

“Hmm?” Franky’s eyes lit up. “I think I get it!” 

“Yeah? Yeah! Give it a go!” 

* * *

“Wow!” Chopper exclaimed, looking around at the three snowmen he, Luffy, and Zoro had built—one for each of them. “That was so fun!” 

“Playing in the snow is always fun!” Luffy said with a grin. He took off his hat and placed it on his snowman. “Now Mister Snowy’s warm.” 

“Oh!” Chopper took off his own hat and put it on his snowman, which was around his height. “There we go!” 

They looked at Zoro. 

“What?” he said. “I don’t wear hats.” 

“Use your earrings,” Luffy suggested. 

“Isn’t the point to keep the snowman warm? How would earrings help?” 

“Give him your jacket?” Chopper said. 

“Don’t wanna.” 

“Then _I’ll_ warm up Zoro-snowman,” Luffy announced. 

“His name is Zoro-man.” 

Luffy leaned in and kissed the snowman on the cheek. “There, he’s warm now,” he said. 

“Don’t I get one?” Zoro muttered. 

* * *

“Anybody wanna play strip poker?” Nami asked, running her finger around the rim of her empty mug. 

“With you? I’ll pass,” Robin said. 

“Yes, _please,”_ Sanji and Brook said together, hurrying to the table. Robin rolled her eyes and went to sit on the couch, curling up with her legs underneath her. 

Nami pulled out a deck of cards from her pocket and handed them to Sanji. “Shuffle,” she ordered. 

* * *

“I really think I got it this time,” Franky said, the lamplight burning low as he examined his inked drawing. He held it up to Usopp. “Right? Didn’t I?” 

“You did!” Usopp exclaimed, grinning. “That looks just like him! Now you just need to color it!” 

“I’ll let the ink dry first,” Franky said. He held up his hand, and Usopp high-fived him and winced. Franky set some weights on the paper to keep it in place on the table before standing and yanking Usopp to his feet. “Let’s see what curly’s got cookin’ for dinner!” 

They came up to the deck and found Zoro picking up Chopper. “Hey,” he said, seeing them. “We were about to go in.” 

“I’m hungry,” Luffy announced. 

“Of course you are,” Usopp said. “Is Chopper okay?” 

“Just tired,” Chopper said into Zoro’s shoulder. 

“Come on, let’s go,” Zoro said. 

When they entered the kitchen, they found Robin asleep on the couch, Sanji stripped down to his underwear, Brook stripped to his bones, and Nami fully clothed, putting away a deck of cards. 

“D-Dinner’s … almost ready,” Sanji said, shivering. 

* * *

“Huh?” Chopper said, looking at the roll of paper. He had cried when the crew surprised him with gifts, and was sitting in the kitchen among his new treasures, which included a new book from Robin and a superhero mask and cape from Usopp. “Franky, this one’s from you? It’s a sheet of paper?” 

“Unroll it,” Franky insisted. 

Chopper let the paper unroll itself, stared at it, and gasped. “It’s a new bounty!” he exclaimed. “Look, look! Thirty million!” 

His picture showed him with a proud grin facing the camera, his arms folded and brow furrowed in determination. It was expertly colored and inked, and though the drawing showed hints of amateurism, Chopper didn’t seem to notice as he excitedly showed it off to the crew. 

“Franky, you made that?” Luffy exclaimed. “That’s awesome! Maybe the Marines’ll see it and update your bounty for real!” 

“You think?” Chopper said, delighted. “Franky, thanks so much! It’s super!” 

“Aw, no problem!” Franky said, grinning. “Usopp helped a little, to be honest …” 

Usopp punched his arm and winced. Franky slapped him on the back, making his knees buckle. 

“I’m gonna go hang this up in the bedroom,” Chopper announced, standing. “This is my favorite birthday!” 


End file.
